It almost seemed inevitable that a third game between St. John’s and UConn would happen.
After two wildly different results in the regular season, the Red Storm and the Huskies deserved a final bout at the World’s Most Famous Arena to settle who was truly the top of the Big East Conference in 2026.
St. John’s upheld their end of the bargain early Friday evening by knocking off rivals Seton Hall to book a spot in the championship game for a second straight season.
Connecticut would then have to take down a Georgetown team in the midst of a Cinderella run and hoping for an upset.
While it wasn’t as dominant a win as their one over Xavier the day before, UConn still proved their superiority with a 67-51 win over the rival Hoyas.
It sets up a winner-take-all Big East Championship game on Saturday night which promises to be a knock-down, drag-out fight that the hordes at Madison Square Garden thrive on.
The Connecticut Huskies are heading back to the Big East Championship game
Braylon Mullins (24) course-corrected and dropped 18 points in the win over Georgetown
After their defeat to Marquette that lost them a share of the regular season title and saw coach Dan Hurley get ejected, Connecticut got a well-needed re-set against a Xavier team they handled with ease.
Still, there were plenty of members of Hurley’s Huskies who were in need of redemption.
Freshman Braylon Mullins missed the first few games of the season with an injury, but took to college basketball like a fish to water.
The Indiana native had a coming out party at Kansas to show fans back in Connecticut what they could expect of him this season.
But his Big East play has not been the most consistent. Mullins hasn’t been a cause for concern, necessarily, more that the 6-foot-6 guard was showing his youth.
In that Marquette loss, Mullins shot 4-for-15 and was a paltry 1-of-10 from beyond the arc.
That cold shooting from deep came up again during the Xavier game, but there was still plenty of opportunity for him to fix his game.
Mullins, a freshman, struggled in the Huskies’ season-ending game against Marquette
But on Friday night, he was atop the scoring chart in a dominant win over the Hoyas
Georgetown was the perfect opponent for him to do just that. His first half performance set the tone for the Huskies as he hit Connecticut’s final four shots of the opening frame.
His 15 points mostly came from inside the paint while the rest of the Huskies remained strong – going into the half up 32-21.
As the game continued, it was clear the Hoyas did not have the same performance in them from the night before.
Guards Jeremiah Williams and Kayvaun Mulready did not shoot the ball well. Down low, Julius Halaifonua was dominated in the paint by UConn center Tarris Reed.
The final touches on the win were handled by Georgia transfer Silas Demary Jr – the only other UConn player to hit double digits, but one of seven Huskies to score.
Center Tarris Reed drives to the basket against Georgetown’s Vincent Iwuchukwu (3)
Transfer guard Silas Demary Jr (2) was the only other Huskies star to hit double digits
Now, the page turns to Saturday night. Since Rick Pitino took over at St. John’s, the Huskies have won four matchups while the Johnnies have won three.
That includes their earlier meeting this year at Madison Square Garden, where the Red Storm overwhelmed Connecticut defensively.
UConn counterpunched with what may have been the most lopsided top-25 victory in the country this year when St. John’s missed their final 24 shots in Hartford.
Neither of those results matter in this matchup. Both teams play elite defense (UConn, 11th in KenPom’s defensive metric; St. John’s, 14th) and both teams are led by talented big men in Reed and the Johnnies’ Zuby Ejiofor.
In what will be the third time in history that UConn and St. John’s meet in the Big East Championship game, the Huskies will see many reach this stage for the first time.
‘Coach has just been telling us play with a lot of joy and passion and kind of just being in the moment and enjoying it and being where our feet are,’ Demary said in response to a question asked by the Daily Mail in anticipation for his first conference title game appearance.
‘I think at times we kind of looked ahead during the season instead of just enjoying and being around each other and enjoying that practice, enjoying that team together. I think sometimes we overlooked it and got lost.
‘And I think over the past couple days, we’re just telling each other to have fun and to have joy and have each other’s back.’
UConn senior Alex Karaban (center): ‘There’s nothing like a Big East Championship.’
Reed, who transferred last season from Michigan, hopes to win his first title in college
Connecticut coach Dan Hurley has his sights set on a second Big East title
Mullins concurs: ‘I think we’re all grateful to be going into the Big East championship game. And being a freshman, like, I mean, there’s nowhere else I would want to be at.’
In the locker room after the game, UConn senior Alex Karaban admitted to not looking past the Georgetown contest, but knows that he’ll inform those who’ve never been on this stage before of what is expected.
‘This place is gonna be amazing,’ Karaban told the Daily Mail. ‘This is what we’ve worked for the entire year… to prepare for winning a championship. It’s been our goal since the summer… there’s nothing like a Big East Championship.’
Reed, who has been called out by his coach publicly at times and dominated the last time these two teams played, is locked into the moment.
‘You want to be in these big-time games and really win championships,’ Reed said in response to the question from the Daily Mail. ‘Looking back on my college career, speaking personally, I haven’t won any type of championship, so-‘
It’s then that Hurley cuts him off: ‘Yet.’
